KENTUCKY

YEAR VISITED: 2020 and 2025.

FAVORITE CITIES AND EXPERIENCES: The year 2020 is one for the history books. While other issues contributed to the crazy year, the COVID disease combined with rising racial tension following the deaths of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd were the main two troubling events responsible for a year that was anything but normal. In March 0f 2020 Louisville resident, Breonna Taylor was killed in her own apartment when police issued a no knock search warrant. Breonna Taylor was African American. This combined with the killing of Minneapolis citizen George Floyd in May, who was also African American, incited nation wide riots demanding justice. This was the context when our family visited Louisville for two days in early 2020. The day we toured downtown Louisville we could tell the city was still reeling from the riots. Downtown windows were boarded up and there were many signs demanding justice for Breonna’s death. However, we didn’t think much of it and continued exploring like we would in any other city.

The tour I was most looking forward to was the Louisville Bat Factory. Roughly 45 minutes after our tour while we were in the gift shop we glanced out the window to see the downtown street flooded with what appeared to be hundreds of people marching in support of Breonna Taylor. We waited for the march to pass by and then followed at a safe distance behind the group to our car and exited the city.

In 2025 I returned to Kentucky, but truthfully didn’t even know I was staying in the state. My friend and I planned a trip to see the Cincinnati Reds and I assumed we would be staying in Cincinnati. I was wrong.

Rather we stayed on the Kentucky side of the Ohio River in Covington. Our hotel was located right on the river and afforded us a fantastic view of downtown Cincinnati.

When it was time to head to the Reds game we simply walked (1 mile to the stadium) to the game. We crossed the river by crossing the Roebling Bridge, which was built in 1867. Along the waterfront in Covington are giant murals depicting the history of the city and Northern Kentucky. There are eighteen murals and they range in topic from Daniel Boone, the building of the bridge, and of course baseball.

STADIUMS AND/OR SPORTING EVENTS: One of our first stops in Louisville was Churchill Downs, the horse racing complex that is most famous for hosting the Kentucky Derby.

In the world of sports, the Kentucky Derby is known as “the most exciting two minutes in sports” and routinely brings over 150,000 spectators to the derby each year.

This complex, on this exact location, has been here since the late 1800’s and the Kentucky Derby is the longest running continuous sporting event in the United States. Everywhere you turn something historical or legendary took place. Unfortunately we arrived twenty minutes before five o’clock and the tour and museum closed at five. Therefore, we were unable to do anything more than walk around the outside of the facility and snap some photos.

While I didn’t grow up watching or even following horse racing, this is definitely a place I would love to return to.

ADVENTURE(S): Anytime someone mentions Kentucky Fried Chicken, our family snickers at our experience while in Kentucky. We were driving North on I-75 when a brown sign read “Original Kentucky Fried Chicken” this exit. Needless to say, we took the exit and ventured a couple miles along highway 25W. It was fairly early in the morning and looking back maybe we weren’t fully awake. The sign pointed us a couple miles down the road to the location of the first Kentucky Fried Chicken store. Ten miles later we didn’t see a KFC that appeared to be the original store. We saw a KFC and a sign obviously advertising the company, but we couldn’t find anything announcing the historic location. We then ventured all the way back to I-75, the freeway we exited from in the first place. Finally on our 3rd pass we stumbled upon, we think, the first Kentucky Fried Chicken store. We kept asking is this just a KFC in Kentucky or is this the Sanders Cafe that led to the creation of Kentucky Fried Chicken? It wasn’t open, and at the time we weren’t even sure we at the correct location, so we just snapped a pic and headed back to the freeway.

NOTABLE DESTINATIONS & STOPS: Louisville Slugger baseball bats have been manufactured for over a century. Upon arrival to the factory you are greeted by the world’s largest baseball bat.

We excitedly took the factory tour where I walked away saying this was one of my favorite museum tours I have ever participated in. It was fun, engaging, and interactive. One of the first stops on the guided tour is the signature wall. These are the contract name plates used to press the players name onto the barrel of their Louisville Slugger model bat.

You then snake through the floor of the factory and watch as workers oversee the making of every facet of the bat.

Personally, I was most intrigued watching the dipping process responsible for turning the barrel of the bat all different colors. At the conclusion of the tour you are allowed to pose for pictures with Louisville Slugger baseball bats used by Major League Baseball legends. Our family choose Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Ken Griffey Jr. and Babe Ruth.